Why the federal cap on international students has hit Alberta — even though it still has room

Back successful 2020, the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology launched a five-year program that centred mostly astir boosting its ranks of planetary students.

"Our roots are successful Calgary, our ambition is global: to bring much of the satellite to SAIT," the papers reads.

By that measure, the program has been an overwhelming success. The 2023-24 schoolhouse twelvemonth saw a grounds fig of planetary students be SAIT, acold outstripping adjacent what the polytechnic institute had expected.

The influx of planetary students — whose tuition is often double, triple oregon adjacent quadruple that of Canadian students taking the aforesaid courses — brought with it a large gross boost. International tuition astatine SAIT totalled $132 million for the year, marking an 81 per cent summation from the twelvemonth before. (Domestic tuition was up arsenic well, but by a comparatively humble 12 per cent, to $78 million.)

And portion SAIT has seen the largest summation successful planetary students, it's acold from unsocial successful this trend.

There were astir 30,000 much planetary students enrolled astatine Alberta post-secondary institutions successful 2023-24 than determination were a decennary prior, according to provincial data. Community colleges and polytechnic institutions relationship for astir three-quarters of that increase. (SAIT, alone, accounts for 20 per cent.)

In aboriginal January 2024, however, things started to change.

That's erstwhile the national authorities announced a two-year headdress connected planetary survey permits.

The determination was described arsenic targeting "bad actors," peculiarly successful Ontario, wherever the provincial curate liable for colleges and universities expressed interest that immoderate institutions were "taking advantage" of planetary students "with mendacious promises of guaranteed employment, residency and Canadian citizenship." It besides came amid interest implicit the effect planetary students were having connected the lodging market.

These concerns were peculiarly acute successful Ontario, which had astir 10 times arsenic galore planetary study-permit holders arsenic Alberta astatine the extremity of 2023, and successful British Columbia, which had much than triple Alberta's numbers.

Given the mode the caller national rules allocated survey permits to each province, however, Alberta was really allowed to admit more international students successful 2024 than it had successful 2023, portion the fig of recently issued permits successful Ontario and B.C. was curtailed. The allocation for Alberta was boosted again for 2025.

In different words, portion Ontario and B.C. are bumping up against the national cap, Alberta inactive has room. Yet portion it could welcome much planetary students than ever before, the fig of caller survey permits that took effect successful 2024 actually declined by astir 10 per cent compared with the erstwhile year.

Leaders of Alberta post-secondary institutions accidental they've seen adjacent bigger declines successful study-permit applications successful 2025, arsenic they judge the caller national rules person discouraged galore would-be planetary students from adjacent applying.

And, they say, the implications for institutions that person travel to trust connected these students could beryllium significant. 

'No longer welcoming'

Pablo Ortiz, dean of students astatine Alberta University of the Arts, says planetary applications astatine his instauration are down 26 per cent since the national headdress was announced, and existent admissions of planetary students are down 30 per cent.

The assemblage has not deed its headdress and could admit much students — if it could find them — but he says the caller national rules person had a chilling effect connected prospective applicants successful different countries, who person interpreted them arsenic a oversea alteration successful the mode Canada views overseas students.

"Basically, what we're saying [as a country] is that we're nary longer welcoming of planetary students," helium said. "That's the connection that everybody, astatine least, is speechmaking abroad."

As a smaller institution, AUArts could beryllium importantly affected by the nonaccomplishment of planetary students, according to Ortiz.

"Some programs that relied heavily connected planetary pupil enrolment mightiness spot reduced offerings oregon adjacent discontinuation," helium said.

Calgary's Bow Valley College is overmuch larger, with an planetary pupil assemblage that measures successful the thousands. But it, too, has been affected.

Under the national rules, it was allowed to supply astir 2,400 provincial attestation letters past year, which are required documents for astir study-permit applicants, confirming they person been assigned a spot to survey astatine a peculiar school. But Bow Valley wasn't capable to conscionable that threshold, said Kara Sayers, dean of enrolment management and registrar, falling astir 10 per cent short.

"And we enrolled acold less students than that astatine the extremity of the day, due to the fact that you suffer them astatine different points successful clip on the process," she said.

The nonaccomplishment of tuition gross tin person far-reaching implications, she added.

"When you're looking astatine the fiscal sustainability oregon viability of a program, and you don't person that planetary tuition to offset it, I deliberation determination are vulnerabilities that travel in," she said.

"And it isn't needfully conscionable programs that person a batch of planetary students, but each of this gets intertwined for an institution."

'Competitive environment'

At The King's University, a tiny Christian instauration successful Edmonton, planetary applications are down 34 per cent.

President Melanie Humphreys says it's a "competitive environment" successful presumption of planetary recruitment, and prospective students are looking elsewhere aft the national authorities introduced the cap, on with further paperwork and regularisation changes that marque coming to Canada much challenging.

"If Australia oregon the U.K. oregon immoderate different state replies sooner successful presumption of guaranteeing them of a visa, past that's wherever they spell and that's wherever the endowment goes," she said.

Humphreys, who besides serves arsenic seat of the Alberta Post-Secondary Network, described the national headdress and associated changes arsenic a "sledgehammer" argumentation that was mostly aimed at a fistful of Ontario institutions that were seen to beryllium taking vantage of the study-permit strategy but is catching Alberta colleges and universities successful its wake.

"From the precise beginning, Alberta really has been a liable player," she said.

The two-year headdress connected survey permits expires astatine the extremity of this twelvemonth and she'd similar to spot "a acold much surgical approach" from the national government in 2026.

Gabriel Miller, president and CEO of Universities Canada, had a akin view.

"What we saw was a bid of rapid-fire, blunt argumentation decisions by the erstwhile national authorities that sent a connection to the satellite that Canada wasn't arsenic funny successful being a premier destination for the astir talented radical successful the world," helium said.

"And the remainder of the satellite got that message. And truthful we've seen a driblet successful the fig of radical applying to travel here. And we've seen a driblet successful enrolments."

'There's acquisition and there's edu-business'

At SAIT, which has seen the largest maturation successful planetary students implicit the past decennary successful Alberta, teaching unit are present bracing for a decline.

They're besides anticipating occupation losses — peculiarly among those who aren't members of the full-time, imperishable faculty.

"We were notified that determination was perchance immoderate layoffs," said Blair Howes, president of the SAIT Academic Faculty Association.

He said the national hasn't yet received authoritative announcement of circumstantial layoffs from SAIT but it's expected immoderate positions volition beryllium discontinued.

"They person indicated that immoderate of the casual positions and impermanent wage ones were apt not to beryllium renewed for the upcoming, adjacent semester."

SAIT president David Ross declined to beryllium interviewed for this story.

The Calgary-based institution recently informed teaching unit that its photojournalism large would beryllium discontinued successful September owed to reduced planetary enrolment.

Overall, however, Howes said there's not arsenic overmuch "doom and gloom" among SAIT module arsenic possibly determination is astatine immoderate Ontario institutions, wherever planetary pupil enrolment has seen overmuch much drastic declines.

He credited SAIT for handling its enlargement of planetary pupil enrolment "fairly well," particularly compared with however immoderate different institutions successful the state person approached it.

"I bash deliberation that for immoderate of the smaller organizations and institutions, it was beauteous overmuch a greed-motivated currency cow, for deficiency of amended words," helium said.

At the aforesaid time, helium besides believes galore institutions, including SAIT, person been forced to look for further gross streams owed to years of government backing cuts, and boosting planetary pupil enrolment has provided an enticing solution.

"There's acquisition and there's edu-business, and the 2 benignant of meld together," Howes said.

"I would accidental that, in immoderate cases, that was a forced initiative. I mean, if you're not going to money post-secondary the mode you funded it 10 years ago, but here's the opportunity: you tin marque up your shortfall by expanding overseas tuition."

The question facing Alberta post-secondary institutions now: What to bash if that accidental goes away?